Set the Stage
by EvilRegalOncer
Summary: At eight years old, you hardly expect to meet the woman who's going to kill you.


**Disclaimer: Harry Potter isn't mine. If it was, Tonks and Lupin wouldn't be dead, and neither would Sirius.**

**Okay, yeah, I know, this has been done a billion times, but here's my take on it.**

If there was one thing eight-year-old Nymphadora Tonks hated more than her name, it was waiting. And being expected to _sit still_ while she waited! (Really, Dora loved her mother, but sometimes Andromeda was so dense. How could she possibly expect her daughter to sit still when there was so much to do, to see, to explore?)

Dora squirmed on the chair inside Madam Malkin's as Andromeda browsed a robe rack a few feet away. "Mummy, I'm bored," she whined. Her hair turned a cherry-red color, reflecting the annoyance and restiveness she felt. "Can we please go get ice cream now? You've been here for hours!"

"Nymphadora." Andromeda sighed, turning to look at the little girl with a mixture of weariness and amusement. Not for the first time, Dora was struck by how pretty her mummy was, with her thick copper hair and lovely dark skin. "We've only been in here for five minutes. Be a good girl and stay there and I promise we can go to Fortescue's."

And she tried, she really did. But asking Dora to be quiet was like telling a hurricane to blow back out over the sea. Finally Dora decided she wasn't going to wait and slid off the chair—well, more fell off, really. Keeping an eye on Andromeda to make sure her exit was unnoticed (she needn't have bothered; Andromeda was absolutely enthralled by the pair of dress robes she was currently trying on) Dora backed out the door of the shop.

Once out in Diagon Alley, her hair flared vivid pink as a grin split her face. This was the place to be! So many people, so much hustle and bustle and noise, so many new smells and odd things to see. Dora set off walking without any particular destination in mind. She had a vague notion of going to Fortescue's and waiting for her mother there. That way at least maybe she could try some samples until Andromeda showed up. In the meantime, there was a whole world to explore!

Lost in her thoughts and staring in the window of Quality Quidditch Supplies as she went by, Dora didn't really pay attention to where she was going and ran into someone. She let out a squeal, tumbling back to the pavement. "Ouch!"

"I would advise you," said a cool female voice, "to look where you're going." A tall, thin blonde stood in front of Dora looking disdainfully down at her. "You could have gotten someone hurt."

"I—I'm sorry." Dora scrambled to her feet. "I'm Dora, what's your name?"

"Narcissa." The woman only replied after a pause, staring at the little girl as if she were from another planet. "Where's your mother and why is she letting you run amok?"

"Oh, she's back at Madam Malkin's." Dora wrinkled her nose, turning her hair curly blonde to match the stranger's. "She takes FOREVER in there. I get so bored. You're really pretty, by the way."

"Ah, Cissy, seems you have a fan." Another woman approached them from across the street. She looked almost exactly like Andromeda except her hair was black, not brown and there was something about her eyes that scared Dora. Still, the girl couldn't keep from gasping.

"Mummy?"

The newcomer inhaled sharply as Narcissa's eyes widened. The two older woman exchanged looks before the dark one crouched down to Dora's level. "What's your mother's name, girl?" Her voice was sweet and soothing.

"A—Andr—" Dora never had been able to properly pronounce her mother's name; pretty as it was, it was also a bit long.

"Andromeda," breathed the blonde, sounding both angry and a bit sad. Her companion made an odd growling noise in her throat, but before Dora could do more than back up a step it had gone.

"Where is your mummy, darling?" The dark woman's voice hadn't changed, but there was something about it now that scared Dora. She swallowed hard and ignored it; surely such a pretty woman, and one who so resembled her mother, couldn't be bad. Right?

"Sh—she's in Madam Malkin's. She told me to wait, but I got bored, so…."

She let out a bark of laughter. "Good for you. Life's too short to waste on clothes, isn't that right, Cissy?"

"Can it, Bella," Narcissa snapped. "We have an issue."

"Oh, believe me, I know." Bella stood up and offered Dora a feral grin. "Well, we'd best get you back. There are some rather unsavory characters roaming around here; it'd be a pity to damage that pretty little face." One of her hands shot out to grip Dora's chin. The girl stifled a panicked cry as Bella's long nails dug into her throat. "Of course, if your blood were to spill I wonder how filthy it'd be….shall I see?"

"Let her GO!" A jet of light struck Bella's forearm. Dora hurled herself away from the dark witch, and the next thing she knew Andromeda was holding the girl against her with one arm. The other was raised, a wand pointing straight into Bella's face. "Don't you DARE touch my daughter, Bellatrix!"

Bellatrix straightened up and sneered. "Been a long time, Andromeda. How's the filth?"

"Call him that again and I'll hex you into oblivion," Andromeda snarled, pulling her daughter closer. "Hello, Narcissa."

"Don't speak to me, traitor," Narcissa hissed. "You lost that right the day you ran off with the Mudblood."

"Don't call my daddy names!" Scared as she was, Dora wasn't about to let anyone insult her family. Bellatrix let out a shrill cackle of delight.

"The little half-blood knows how to play!" She pulled a wand from her pocket. "Well, Dora, if you want to play like a big girl, you have to pay like one," she crooned in a sickly baby voice.

"Bellatrix, I'm warning you," Andromeda spat. "Stay AWAY from Nymphadora!" She stood up, pulled her daughter into her arms and began to walk away.

Bellatrix smiled eerily. "I wouldn't dream of hurting her, Andy. In fact, I promise not to hurt her."

"Bella!" Narcissa whispered, eyes wide with shock. "How could you—?"

"Ah, Cissy, you forgot." Bellatrix's smile grew. "I have a rather nasty habit of breaking promises."


End file.
